Bones connect to tell a tale

Whanganui Regional Museum collections assistant Kathy Greensides prepares a moa skeleton for the museum's The House Of Bones exhibition from Sunday. Photo/Bevan Conley

The latest exhibition at the Whanganui Regional Museum has been stripped to its bare bones.

The House Of Bones opens on Sunday and will run until 2015.

Kyle Dalton from the museum said the exhibition was set up like the home of an eccentric bone collector.

Around 5000 individual bones will feature, including skeletons of horses, cats, dogs, moa, even a whale and a python.

"There are also individual bones stored in chests and various places around the 'house'," Mr Dalton said.

In addition will be a collection of skulls of birds, weasels, rats, big cats and seals.

Most of the bones came from the museum's archives, he said.

Rather than usual museum tags, items will be marked with hand-written notes.

"It's a bit like Indiana Jones meets Tin-Tin," Mr Dalton said.

The exhibition will be used for educational purposes and because it is such a long-running exhibition, will evolve.

Other summer activities at the museum include visits from Father Christmas on December 16-24, a talk by Mr Dalton on how Wanganui has celebrated Christmas over the past 170 years, and an acoustic music concert on December 20.

For more information, visit wrm.org.nz - the museum will be open every day except Christmas Day.